Ludhiana: Night shelters too few to cater to hundreds of homeless sleeping in open

The Raen Baseras — night shelters being run by the Municipal Corporation at different locations in the city — are providing basic facilities of stay and bedding to the poor and needy amid the severe cold. However, these are too few to cater to hundreds who continue to spend sleepless nights in the open. The government needs to come up with more such shelters in the city.

At present, three night shelters are being run near Vishkarma Chowk, Industrial Area B in Moti Nagar and near Haibowal Dairy Complex on Hambran Road, where around 50 inmates are accommodated at each shelter. These facilities are not sufficient to provide shelter to all homeless in the city. Besides, many of the deprived, including rickshaw-pullers, beggars and daily wagers, do not prefer the shelters as these are located far from places where spend their daytime.

Ramdeen, a rickshaw-puller who spends his nights under a bridge near Bhai Bala Chowk, said as he works in the Civil Lines area, it is not possible for him to go to these shelters, even if free stay facilities are available. “I just need a blanket and a quilt to spend the night as my day starts early in the morning. Though it is extremely difficult to sleep in the open and many nights turn sleepless due to the biting cold, there is no other option for people like us. If we want to go, the authorities pick us from here but they do did not provide drop facility in the morning. Travelling from far-off places to the workplace becomes difficult,” he said.

The night shelters provide bedding, a hall, caretakers and bus service to pick up people from roads but there is no facility for food.

An inmate at the Industrial Area night shelter, Sia Saran, said generally the atmosphere at the shelter remains calm but at times, a few inmates under the influence of liquor indulge in unnecessary arguments, disturbing the peaceful environment. “However, caretakers warn them,” he added.

The authorities have arranged new blankets and extra bedding to accommodate the poor and needy. Similarly, the shelter home near Vishwakarma Chowk has recently been renovated and reopened for those in need. The bus facility has also been started to pick up people sleeping on roads.

Caretakers’ concern

The shelter homes are managed by caretakers who perform duties in rotation. One of them said as there were no proper credentials of visitors, drug addicts and alcoholics also enter the shelters and create problems for others. “Though entry registers are maintained, there is no way to verify the genuine credentials of inmates,” the caretaker said.

Most prefer sleeping outdoors

At the same time, a majority of people seen sleeping on roads and under bridges prefer staying in the open for several reasons. The main reason is that they receive alms, blankets and food while sleeping outdoors, which they do not get at shelters. “Here, Good Samaritans come and put blankets on us while we are sleeping and also provide food and clothes, which will not happen at night shelters,” said Tara, a rag-picker on the Ferozepur road.

Visitors at night shelters feel that if food is provided twice a day at the shelter homes, more people would prefer staying there. Another concern is that buses are not run regularly — sometimes they come to pick up people while on other occasions they fail to reach the needy. There should be continuity and inmates should be dropped back in the morning at places from where they were picked up at night.